Two giant gold nuggets found in Australia worth $ 250,000

The valuable discovery was documented on a Discovery Channel show.

(CNN) –– Miners in South Australia discovered two huge gold nuggets, worth AU $ 350,000 ($ 250,000), in historic gold fields.

The pair of rocks weighing a total of 3.5 kilograms (7.7 pounds) and were found the same day near Tarnagulla, in the state of Victoria, as shown during the episode of the program "Aussie Gold Hunters" broadcast this Thursday in Discovery Channel.

Gold prospectors Brent Shannon and his brother-in-law Ethan West found the seeds in a matter of hours with the help of West's father, Paul West, according to a Discovery Channel press release.

The seeds have been valued at $ 250,000.

This treasure could reach up to 30% more than its estimated value by weight if sold to a collector, according to the statement.

"I thought we had a chance," Shannon told the Australian morning show Smiles. "It was on virgin land, which means it is intact and has not been mined."

The couple had been waiting for months for a permit to begin panning for gold in the area, according to the statement.

West said he estimates he has collected thousands of small pieces of gold in four years.

"These (seeds) are definitely one of the most important finds," he noted. "Having two large chunks in one day is pretty amazing."

Ethan West, Brent Shannon and Paul West pose in the fields of gold.

The team, calling themselves the Poseidon Crew, told Sunrise that they use an excavator to dig up dirt, before using a metal detector to check for gold.

In January 2013, an amateur explorer unearthed a gold seed weighing 5.5 kilograms (12.1 pounds), which was buried 60 centimeters (23.6 inches) in the ground outside of Ballarat, an hour drive south of Tarnagulla.

At the time, experts valued the find at at least $ 300,000.

Gold has been continuously found in the region since 1851, but the technology has become an essential aid to modern prospectors, explained Cordell Kent, owner of The Mining Exchange Gold Shop, in 2013.

"In the old days, miners could only see or feel gold, but now with detectors they can hear it," said Kent.

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